FY 2017 Pentagon Budget Preview

Earlier this week, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter previewed President Obama’s Pentagon budget request for fiscal year 2017. Here’s what we know.

The president will request $582.7 billion in overall Pentagon funding next year. That figure includes funding for the Pentagon's slush fund, officially called the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) budget.

So, in 2017, it’s safe to say that the Pentagon will be padded with billions of dollars above and beyond its legislated caps under the Bipartisan Budget Deal passed late last year. In fiscal year 2016, the OCO budget was $59 billion above and beyond the Pentagon’s FY 2016 budget of $548 billion.

The request would quadruple funding for the “European Reassurance Initiative,” a program that provides European support in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2014, although it’s unclear how our involvement in this conflict is beneficial.

The request is expected to fully commit to the F-35 fighter jet, an aircraft that is billions over budget and years behind schedule.

Next week, the president will release his full fiscal year 2017 budget proposal. We’ll be bringing you a full analysis, charts, and more. Stay tuned!